Recipes from a pastry chef

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Since becoming pregnant, I had been CRAVING sticky buns. Not just any sticky buns, but really sticky, really sweet, and a little nutty sticky buns. I searched and searched and dreamt and searched some more for a good sticky buns recipe that looked as good as it sounded and this is what I found.

Cinnamon Sticky Buns

Dough:

1/4 cup warm water (105° to 115°)

1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast

1/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup milk

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing

3 large egg yolks

1 Tbsp. finely grated orange zest

1 1/4 teaspoon. salt

4 to 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

Filling:

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Topping:

3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter

3 Tbsp. honey

1 Tbsp. light corn syrup

1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) coarsely chopped pecans

Make the dough. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine warm water, yeast and 1 tsp. sugar. Stir to dissolve and let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes.

Add milk, butter, remaining sugar, egg yolks, orange zest, salt and 3 cups flour. Mix on low speed until blended. Switch to a dough hook and then, again on low speed, slowly incorporate the remaining 1 cup of flour. Increase speed to medium, kneading dough until smooth and slightly sticky (adding a little more flour if too wet), 3 to 5 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a large, buttered bowl. Turn dough over in bowl to coat with the butter from the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour (or 2 hours if not in an entirely warm place). After the dough has risen, punch down. Turn out onto a lightly floured cutting board and let sit 20 minutes.

Make the filling. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Melt butter; keep separate.

Roll dough out into a 12″ x 18″ rectangle. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Starting with the long side, roll dough into a cylinder. Place seam side down on a flat surface and cut crosswise into 15 slices.

Place dough slices, flat side down, on top of prepared topping. Crowd them so they touch. Cover with plastic wrap, leaving room for the buns to rise, and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature while the oven preheats. Preheat oven to 375°. Bake buns until golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove pan from oven and immediately invert onto a serving tray or baking dish. Let buns cool slightly and serve warm.